Plug connectors of this kind can be used wherever optical signal transmission and an electrical power supply are involved simultaneously. For example, in modern motor vehicles, the data transmission is by way of beam waveguides and the electrical power is fed to the loads via metal cables.
The metal cables and the beam waveguide cables are taken out of the plug housing jointly at the back of the plug connector. In such cases, the electrical cable cores and the beam waveguide cables are frequently combined into a bunch and possibly surrounded by a common protective covering. In such cases, there is a risk that, despite their sensitivity to kinking and bending with too small a radius of curvature, the beam waveguide cables may undergo the same treatment as the metal cables, which are insensitive in this respect. A permanent or even just temporary curvature of the beam waveguide cables with too small a radius of curvature can permanently damage the beam waveguide fibers and result in excessive attenuation. This is particularly important if a 90.degree. cable outlet is required.